Blog Post

Statistics on date rape are as scary today as they were years ago, when news stories on date rapes drugs first started appearing. It is just as important today to understand date rape drug detection and the drug detection technology available today. Let’s start with some important statistics.

Key Facts and Statistics on Date Rape

1. The most common date rape drugs are rohypnol, GHB, and Ketamine.
2. The most targeted demographic is women, aged 18-24.
3. It is estimated that over 80% of rape cases are date rape. Additionally, 1 in 5 young women may be rape victims.
4. According to data collected by the National Sexual Violence Resource Center, one in five women are sexually assaulted while attending college.
5. Bureau of Justice Statistics indicates that only 30.7% of all rapes are reported to the police
6. Up to 80% of the date rapes that occur when men are perpetrating against women happen when the woman is intoxicated.
7. Women who are the victims of a date rape are more likely to suffer from PTSD than women in the general population.

Staying Safe: Date Rape Drug Detection

Drug detection technologies, especially those that detect GHB and Ketamine, can help keep you safe from date rape drugs. While there are many products being sold or developed, the most effective, most tested technology are drug detection coasters from Drink Safe Technologies. Each of our coasters is a simple color change test. When you place a drop of your drink on the two spots on the coaster, a spot that turns blue means your drink may have been compromised. The two spots are tinted to indicate a specific test: the greenish tint checks for GHB and pinkish tint checks for Ketamine.

Be sure to ask your favorite bar to stock these. While it is necessary to protect yourself, spreading the word can help protect others as well.

Staying Safe: Other Ways to Avoid Date Rape

While drugs like GHB and Ketamine present a unique danger, there are actions one can take in order to reduce the chances of date rape. These include:

1. Avoid being intoxicated, which impares awareness and one’s ability to observe surroundings.
2. Always maintain control of your drink and don’t accept drinks from others
3. Trust your gut, your instincts, and act on them
4. Use the buddy system, and look out for each other
5. Be sure of yourself and assert yourself
6. It’s okay to pour a drink out if you lose control of it

Have You Been Drugged?

GHB and Ketamine are generally tasteless and colorless. However, GHB can have a ‘salty’ taste. If you detect any change in flavor of your drink, pour it out. If you experience any of the following symptoms, your drink may have been drugged:

1. Dizziness, lightheadedness, or loss of muscular control
2. Blurred vision
3. Seizures and/or blackouts
4. Loss of sense of time
5. Again, trust your instincts!

If you suspect that you’ve been drugged, immediately call 911 or have a friend take you to the hospital, and report this as an emergency. Call the police and report the incident. Once you’ve called for help, start to gather evidence: keep the drink, keep the coaster, ask the hospital to take a urine sample, leave the scene alone -- do not clean up.